St Vincent and the Grenadines have updated their National Food-Based Dietary Guidelines and urged citizens to return to traditional and indigenous foods.
The guidelines have been updated after 15 years as the country’s food import bill stands at 200,000,000 dollars as of August 2021.
Officials from the Ministry of Health say the nine new guidelines aim to get Vincentians to say no to trans fat and reduce salt and sugar intake by avoiding highly processed foods.
The new guidelines include more intake of staples, vegetables, fruits, food from animals, legumes, fats and oils, and encourage children to drink more water.
Health officials say it does not include sweeteners and sugars.
On an environmental level, indigenous foods can improve environmental sustainability by contributing to agrobiodiversity and strengthening climate resilience.
Indigenous vegetables can be harvested more times per year than many other crops; they support the resilience of farmers who are more often faced with failed harvests due to climate change impacts.
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines approved their first food-based dietary guidelines in 2006.
The development of the dietary guidelines was led by the Ministry of Health and Environment, in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the Ministry of Education, the Bureau of Standards, the Bureau of Consumer Affairs and the Chamber of Commerce, as well as the Caribbean Food and Nutrition Institute, the FAO, the Institute of Nutrition of Central America and Panama and the Pan American Health Organization.
